Recorded crime down by 8% in Wiltshire but robbery and sexual offences up
The force say the Covid pandemic is behind the fall
Last updated 4th Nov 2021
Wiltshire Police has seen a drop of 8% in total recorded crime in the past 12 months.
The latest figures published by the Office for National Statistics shows that in the year ending June 2021 there were 38,178 crimes recorded in the county, excluding fraud.
That is down from the 12 months to June 2020 when there were 41,086.
The latest figures released by the Office for National Statistics show that crime in Wiltshire has dropped more than the national decrease of 3% and regional South West decrease of 5%.
However, although the Force’s long-term trend shows relative stability in the crime rate, they are expecting crime volumes to increase as we return to expected levels, post-Covid.
WILTSHIRE POLICE CRIME RATES BROKEN DOWN
The Force saw a big drop in crimes like, shoplifting, theft, residential burglary and vehicle offences, that is in line with figures as the Covid-19 pandemic and lockdowns meant businesses were closed and people were staying at home.
Stalking and sexual harassment saw the biggest increase, along with robbery.
Rape reports are also on the rise but this was driven by one month in 2020 that saw an unusual high number of reports but they actually decreased by 1.3% compared to the previous 12 months.
Wiltshire Police was one of just three Forces to see an increase in robbery, bucking the national and regional trend, but this can be explained by two factors.
Firstly, a low level of these sorts of crimes, so this percentage increase was down to just four additional crimes. Secondly, the previous year had a single month with exceptionally low robbery reports, which skewed the annual figures to create an exceptionally low year.
Superintendent Sarah Robbins, Wiltshire Police’s head of geographical crime said: “Although this eight per cent reduction in reported crime is obviously a positive thing, both for us as a police force and for our communities, it is important to remember that these figures reflect an unprecedented 12 months, where the pandemic had an understandable and predictable impact on the types of crimes being reported.
“However, the fact Wiltshire has the second lowest crime rate per population is something to be celebrated and I hope it provides some reassurance to people locally about the work Wiltshire Police is doing to keep people safe.
“We are now focused on the long-term picture, and we are already looking ahead to what we expect the coming years to bring as the country returns to a new normality.
“We know that sometimes statistics alone can paint an inaccurate picture, so I hope that providing the context behind some of these figures and explaining the analysis that we carry out to understand various crime trends will be reassuring for our communities.
“For example, although the rise in reports of rape looks concerning, we want to make it clear that our own most recent data has actually seen a drop of 1.3 per cent.
“Dealing with rape and serious sexual offences is currently a priority for the Force, and we have been working closely with partner agencies to ensure we have a range of measures in place so we can both support victims and also increase the likelihood that the perpetrator will face justice.
“It goes without saying that we take reports of rape and sexual assault incredibly seriously and we want our communities to have complete confidence in reporting these types of offences to the police.
“Overall, my main message to the public is that when you compare our overall data to other Forces of a similar size and population, Wiltshire continues to be a very safe place to live and work and our officers and staff continue to work incredibly hard to protect the public.”